From our friends at Georgetown Athletics...
Georgetown University announced today that it is scheduled to move forward with the construction of the John R. Thompson Jr. Intercollegiate Athletics Center. Last week, the University’s Board of Directors approved the next phase of the project and site work construction is scheduled to begin the first week in August.
A formal groundbreaking ceremony for the Thompson Athletics Center, named in honor of the Hall of Fame Men’s Basketball Coach who guided the Hoyas for 27 years and led the program to the 1984 NCAA Championship, will be held on the site on Friday, Sept. 12.
The Thompson Athletics Center, a major priority of Georgetown’s $1.5 billion For Generations to Come fundraising campaign, is expected to be completed in August 2016. The $62 million project will be completely supported through philanthropy.
“The start of construction on the Thompson Athletics Center is a watershed moment for Georgetown Athletics as well as our University and alumni community,” Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Lee Reed said. “This is the culmination of a plan that is intended to substantively improve the experiences of every Georgetown student-athlete, coach and staff member. We are grateful to our entire community for their support of this initiative and I expect that this will serve as a catalyst to carry our department forward for generations to come.”
The four-story, 144,000-square-foot building will be constructed adjacent to McDonough Arena and include: practice courts, locker rooms, team meeting rooms, lounge areas, coaches' offices for men's and women's basketball, locker rooms for four additional varsity sports, weight-training and sports medicine rooms for all varsity athletes, the Student-Athlete Academic and Leadership Center, an auditorium and team meeting facilities for all varsity programs as well as a new venue for the Georgetown Athletics Hall of Fame.
John Thompson Jr.’s name is synonymous with success. From 1972 to 1999, he compiled 596 wins, the most of any coach in the history of Georgetown University and the magnitude of his achievements is undeniable.
On the court, he amassed league-leading records against all BIG EAST Conference opponents (233-122) and captured 13 BIG EAST Championships, seven regular season titles and six tournament championships. Thompson’s Hoya teams earned 24-consecutive invitations to postseason play, appeared in three NCAA Final Fours (1982, 1984 and 1985) and won the NCAA Championship in 1984.
Off the court, he inspired his players to pursue their degrees and Thompson ended his tenure with a 97 percent graduation rate, while 26 of his players were drafted by the National Basketball Association, including eight in the first round.
A member of the National Basketball Hall of Fame, Thompson was named Coach of the Year a total of seven times. The BIG EAST honored him with the award following the 1979-80, 1986-87 and 1991-92 seasons. After leading the Hoyas to the National Championship in 1984 he received the title from The United States Basketball Writers Association and The Sporting News. Following back-to-back trips to the National Championship game in 1985, he was honored by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He even garnered the award on a global scale when United Press International honored him following the 1986-87 seasons.
More information about the John R. Thompson Jr. Intercollegiate Athletics Center can be found at: http://campaign.georgetown.edu/iac.html
